The IUP Dance Theater will present
its Fall Showcase with performances on Friday and Saturday, October 25 and 26,
2013, at 7:00 p.m. They will also perform at a 2:00 p.m. matinee on Sunday,
October 27. The showcase will be presented in the Zink Hall Dance Theater,
located on Maple Street of the IUP campus.
Under the direction of Holly
Boda-Sutton, the showcase features a variety of works, including dramatic and
light-hearted pieces. Seatbelts Save
Lives is an entertaining exploration of catching and releasing human motion
and guiding its momentum.
Strange
World retells an old Noh (Japanese theater tradition) story from the 1400s
with a contemporary backdrop, while still incorporating traditional elements. Setting
the scene is an original score by David Surtasky.
An original contemporary ballet choreographed
by Joan Van Dyke is performed to the music of Variation Sue le Carnaval de
Venise. This work addresses the themes and motifs of a Venetian Carnaval,
including masked mystique and spectacle, as the dancers move through the
moonlit streets of Venice with their gondoliers.
Seasoned choreographer Anna Ponak-Shively
choreographed Blue Jeans, Baby!, a
jazz piece about the feelings of confidence experienced when wearing a favorite
pair of jeans.
Enough!, an original composition by Jack Stamp of the IUP Music Department,
incorporates bassoonist Jason Worzbyt with the movement of the dancers. Howdy Neighbor, Howdy is a festive and high-energy piece is an original Appalachian
clogging work set by guest choreographer April Cush.
The company, with the assistance
and advice of Jessica Miller from the IUP Counseling Center, developed a work concerning
themes of relationship dynamics entitled First
Touch, Last Touch.
Several of these dances explore
varying attitudes and perspectives within different types of relationships
ranging from romantic to religious. Individual dance themes within the concert may be considered inappropriate
for younger audiences.
Tickets for the performances are
available through the Hadley Union Building Box Office on the IUP campus and
online through IUP Tickets. They can also be purchased by calling the HUB
Box Office at (724) 257-1313.
Remaining tickets will be sold at
the door starting 45 minutes prior to the performance. Ticket prices are $14
regular admission, $12 for senior citizens and groups, and $12 for I-Card
holders and children.
More information on this and other
events within the Lively Arts is available by e-mailing lively-arts@iup.edu or by calling
(724) 357-2787.
IUP Dance Theater is funded, in
part, by the IUP Student Cooperative Association. It is produced by the
Department of Theater and Dance of the College of Fine Arts.
Photograph by Ahmad Abusaad.